"THE PREZNIT CONSIDERS MY DEPARTURE A SERIOUS ISSUE..."

Some men are born for some jobs, some aren't. One who was, I'm absolutely sure, is White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer. The man is, as Steve Martin put it in Housesitter, "the Ernest Hemingway of bullshit". Sadly, he is resigning.

"I love this job," Fleischer told reporters at his informal Monday morning briefing. "I believe deeply about President Bush as a man and I believe deeply in his policies, but it's my time to go."

He would not speculate on who would take his place, but presidential aides said deputy press secretary Scott McClellan was the likely successor, although there are other possibilities.

Hmm, in terms of a replacement, I can think of only one person on this earth who can match Fleischer's special batch of skills. Funny thing is, he's out of a job too:



Shrub recently expressed his fondness for Mr Sahaf in his interview with Brokaw, so you never know.

And by the way, can't we spin this as Fleischer whimping out, this time ultimately, in the face of tough questions from an 80-something woman? Hehehe, Helen, make sure you rip the next one a new one.